Pink sells, blue is back
College clothing line diversity makes business boom
Tony Gonzalez
Issue date: 10/25/07 Section: Arts
Oddly enough, tie-dye sells. Pale pink too. And the fluorescents.
So says senior Lindsey Snelgrove, now working her fourth year in the Hillsdale College Bookstore. As much as anyone, Snelgrove tracks changes in the college's clothing line.
"That tie's been on sale for two years," she said Tuesday, pointing to the blue and white diagonal stripes adorned with the college's name. "We can't get rid of it."
But that tie is a unique case. Assistant Clothing Buyer Cindy Willing is one of the bookstore's primary clothing selectors, and although she won't take credit, she's helped diversify the clothing line.
Sales are booming.
"When I first came here everything was geared to the alumni. . . $40 and up. Most students would graduate without a piece of Hillsdale College clothing," Willing said.
"The men's sweatpants, the girls love them. . . and the guys. I've gone through probably 300 pants."
The new presence of Under Armour athletic wear, thick and fluorescent sweatshirts and "button" hoodies with nontraditional text are flying out the door.
"We went from the basic - and there was a real pale pink, it's awful, so awful - now
it's earth tones," Snelgrove said.
But it's also jean jacket, fleece, vest, pajama, camouflage beanies, reversible beanies, straw hats, shelves of sale items and shirts with "Mom" printed below the college name.
Choices continue to increase.
From runways to shop shelves
It's a gamble, shirt retailers say, to predict what fashions students want.
Willing watches popular retail items before selecting Hillsdale apparel. She also considers the opinions of sales representatives who visit the college a few times per year.
"We're starting to see a little trend shift from the hoodies back to crewneck sweatshirts. That's a little bit of a surprise," said Gwen Gardner, bookstore manager at Davidson College in North Carolina, and former president of the National Association of College Stores.
Pink's popularity is dying a bit after three years on the rise, Gardner said. But "fashion colors" and non-school-color items continue to sell.
"It's different," freshman Rachel Vanderwall said of her pink sweatshirt on the way to lunch Tuesday. "I don't want to go with only blue and white."
"We didn't have any of those [colors]," Erica Kuchenmeister '00 said. "What I remember, it was just the school colors."
Before the bookstore makes big purchases in February and March, which provide stock that lasts through all seasons, major clothing distributors and name-brand companies work behind the scenes to keep tabs on youthful styles.
Then NACS gathers information for colleges. Some stores survey students, attend fashion shows and pore through catalogs.
"We don't want to operate in a vacuum," Gardner said.
Once a stock is purchased, it's time for bookstore workers like Willing to take another look, this time keeping tabs on the store inventory.
"A few years ago we couldn't sell royal blue," Willing said as an example.
Now blue is back in style and well stocked.
Risk and personality
Styles often change on a broader scale before being reflected in individual bookstores.
And despite all the marketing and research, there's always risk.
"We always take some chances," Gardner said.
Willing has increasing flexibility to dabble in styles. Former sales representatives wouldn't sell in sets of fewer than 72 pieces, but she can now get smaller quantities - as few as 12 jackets.
The bookstore also depends on the die-hards.
"There are some people...I assume they are alumni...that come in here and buy something every summer," Willing said.
Teri Martin, McIntyre house director for nine years, buys a sweatshirt and multiple T-shirts every year, including some as gifts for her niece, nephew and grandson.
Why sweatshirts?
"It's always cold in the dorm. House moms get cold too," she said.
Although Martin recently packed and gave away dozens of her college clothing items, she did buy a single item at the start of this semester. She branched out from sweatshirts and now wears a polar fleece jacket to college functions.
Willing also focuses on the unique personality of the college. At Hillsdale, a new line of Dale Legacy wear is designed to appeal to alumni and raise funds. The Dale line is a double meaning which plays on the college's former mascot and the popular name students now use for the campus.
Fraternities and sororities continue to churn out T-shirts and many campus clubs have jumped the apparel bandwagon.
Informational Technology Services Systems Administrator Greg Harms '00, often buys Tower Players T-shirts, but has a handful of college T-shirts and one polo.
"I have one sweatshirt...although lately I haven't been able to find it," Harms said.
Keeping an eye on decades of fashion
CarolAnn Barker, academic advisor and former dean of women, remembers when women rarely wore slacks on campus.
"We wouldn't be caught dead wearing slacks on a Sunday," she said of her time as a student on campus. "When I was [working] here in the early '80s, students would still
mostly dress up."
Now she notes a more edgy appeal to college apparel, which she said mirrors increased casual dress on campus. Although it took her years to purchase her first college clothing item, Barker didn't regret when she started.
"I still wear the sweatpants I got in 1980. They're the best-wearing sweatpants I've ever had," she said.
But she calls herself curmudgeonly in some ways.
"I don't agree with dress down Fridays," Barker said. "You've got everybody greeting [visitors] in sweatshirts?"
See the current line of college clothing online at http://bookstore.hillsdale.edu/Home.aspx.
So says senior Lindsey Snelgrove, now working her fourth year in the Hillsdale College Bookstore. As much as anyone, Snelgrove tracks changes in the college's clothing line.
"That tie's been on sale for two years," she said Tuesday, pointing to the blue and white diagonal stripes adorned with the college's name. "We can't get rid of it."
But that tie is a unique case. Assistant Clothing Buyer Cindy Willing is one of the bookstore's primary clothing selectors, and although she won't take credit, she's helped diversify the clothing line.
Sales are booming.
"When I first came here everything was geared to the alumni. . . $40 and up. Most students would graduate without a piece of Hillsdale College clothing," Willing said.
"The men's sweatpants, the girls love them. . . and the guys. I've gone through probably 300 pants."
The new presence of Under Armour athletic wear, thick and fluorescent sweatshirts and "button" hoodies with nontraditional text are flying out the door.
"We went from the basic - and there was a real pale pink, it's awful, so awful - now
it's earth tones," Snelgrove said.
But it's also jean jacket, fleece, vest, pajama, camouflage beanies, reversible beanies, straw hats, shelves of sale items and shirts with "Mom" printed below the college name.
Choices continue to increase.
From runways to shop shelves
It's a gamble, shirt retailers say, to predict what fashions students want.
Willing watches popular retail items before selecting Hillsdale apparel. She also considers the opinions of sales representatives who visit the college a few times per year.
"We're starting to see a little trend shift from the hoodies back to crewneck sweatshirts. That's a little bit of a surprise," said Gwen Gardner, bookstore manager at Davidson College in North Carolina, and former president of the National Association of College Stores.
Pink's popularity is dying a bit after three years on the rise, Gardner said. But "fashion colors" and non-school-color items continue to sell.
"It's different," freshman Rachel Vanderwall said of her pink sweatshirt on the way to lunch Tuesday. "I don't want to go with only blue and white."
"We didn't have any of those [colors]," Erica Kuchenmeister '00 said. "What I remember, it was just the school colors."
Before the bookstore makes big purchases in February and March, which provide stock that lasts through all seasons, major clothing distributors and name-brand companies work behind the scenes to keep tabs on youthful styles.
Then NACS gathers information for colleges. Some stores survey students, attend fashion shows and pore through catalogs.
"We don't want to operate in a vacuum," Gardner said.
Once a stock is purchased, it's time for bookstore workers like Willing to take another look, this time keeping tabs on the store inventory.
"A few years ago we couldn't sell royal blue," Willing said as an example.
Now blue is back in style and well stocked.
Risk and personality
Styles often change on a broader scale before being reflected in individual bookstores.
And despite all the marketing and research, there's always risk.
"We always take some chances," Gardner said.
Willing has increasing flexibility to dabble in styles. Former sales representatives wouldn't sell in sets of fewer than 72 pieces, but she can now get smaller quantities - as few as 12 jackets.
The bookstore also depends on the die-hards.
"There are some people...I assume they are alumni...that come in here and buy something every summer," Willing said.
Teri Martin, McIntyre house director for nine years, buys a sweatshirt and multiple T-shirts every year, including some as gifts for her niece, nephew and grandson.
Why sweatshirts?
"It's always cold in the dorm. House moms get cold too," she said.
Although Martin recently packed and gave away dozens of her college clothing items, she did buy a single item at the start of this semester. She branched out from sweatshirts and now wears a polar fleece jacket to college functions.
Willing also focuses on the unique personality of the college. At Hillsdale, a new line of Dale Legacy wear is designed to appeal to alumni and raise funds. The Dale line is a double meaning which plays on the college's former mascot and the popular name students now use for the campus.
Fraternities and sororities continue to churn out T-shirts and many campus clubs have jumped the apparel bandwagon.
Informational Technology Services Systems Administrator Greg Harms '00, often buys Tower Players T-shirts, but has a handful of college T-shirts and one polo.
"I have one sweatshirt...although lately I haven't been able to find it," Harms said.
Keeping an eye on decades of fashion
CarolAnn Barker, academic advisor and former dean of women, remembers when women rarely wore slacks on campus.
"We wouldn't be caught dead wearing slacks on a Sunday," she said of her time as a student on campus. "When I was [working] here in the early '80s, students would still
mostly dress up."
Now she notes a more edgy appeal to college apparel, which she said mirrors increased casual dress on campus. Although it took her years to purchase her first college clothing item, Barker didn't regret when she started.
"I still wear the sweatpants I got in 1980. They're the best-wearing sweatpants I've ever had," she said.
But she calls herself curmudgeonly in some ways.
"I don't agree with dress down Fridays," Barker said. "You've got everybody greeting [visitors] in sweatshirts?"
See the current line of college clothing online at http://bookstore.hillsdale.edu/Home.aspx.
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